


I knew from the first time (I'd stay for a long time)

by flower_girl



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Fanboy!Kyungsoo, First Love, Jongin is a little dumb, Kyungsoo is too cute, M/M, and Baekhyun is the wise one
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-16
Updated: 2018-10-16
Packaged: 2019-08-03 06:33:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,080
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16320983
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flower_girl/pseuds/flower_girl
Summary: Hips don't lie but Jongin might (or where Jongin pretends to be a Red Velvet fanboy to impress his ultimate crush, Doh Kyungsoo)





	I knew from the first time (I'd stay for a long time)

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer that I love Red Velvet and Black Pink <3 This fic was written purely for fun and I hope you guys enjoy it as much as I liked writing it!

 

 

“Look at him move those hips,” Jongin sighs dreamily, his eyes concentrated on the other boy across the quad, his hands clasped together over his head as he dances around like a shark.

“He looks like an idiot,” Baekhyun breaks Jongin’s focus with a well timed jabbed. “What type of dance move is that? I swear there’s no more creativity or originality in the Korean music industry. They’re ripping off nursery rhymes now.”

“He’s cute,” Jongin argues back. “The dance is cute when he does it.”

“I bet you don’t even know who sings that song,” Baekhyun teases him.

“It’s umm, it’s a Boa song?” Jongin asks skeptically.

“You are unbelievable,” Baekhyun laughs.

“I don’t listen to Kpop,” Jongin defends. “American music is much better.”

“You don’t even understand what they’re saying,” Baekhyun sputters out. “The only words you recognize are sex and fuck.”

“It’s better than ‘hit you with that ddu-ddu ddu-ddu du’. What the hell even is a ddu-ddu? I don’t want to be hit with that,” Jongin retorts.

“No because you want to hit _that_ ,” Baekhyun giggles, pointing out Kyungsoo wiggling his hips around again.

“Damn right,” Jongin breathes heavily out, watching as Kyungsoo’s tiny waist swivels from side to side and his thighs rub against each other when he brings them together.

“You should ask him out,” Baekhyun says. “I’m sick of you looking at him like a honey starved bear for the past year.”

“I can’t just go up to him like that,” Jongin says. “He doesn’t even know I exist. We don’t have any classes together.”

Jongin first saw Kyungsoo on a subway ride home. He had stayed after class to wipe down the chalkboards. The station nearest to his school was empty, everyone heading home early to avoid the heavy rainfall and curl up with a bowl of soup and some blankets. Jongin wasn’t completely alone though because a few steps beside him was another boy with the same school uniform, wrapped up in a light red rain jacket, the hood pulled over his head and covering his eyes. He had his headphones plugged in and was humming to a song, his feet tapping to whatever beat that was playing. The train arrived and to Jongin’s surprise, the boy got into the same car as him even though there were eight other ones, almost completely empty too.

They sat across from each other. Jongin’s phone was long dead and the ride home was long so he found entertainment in discreetly looking at the boy who seemed to be engrossed in his phone and whatever song was playing. Jongin liked his smile, wide and pretty as he mouthed along to lyrics. Then he removed his hood as it got hot in the train and Jongin liked his face, prettier than any celebrity or model he had ever come across on television or in magazines. By the time Jongin had to get off the train, he was a little in love and that feeling has only grown throughout the year along with his hopeless pining.

“Be a man and go ask if you can suck his dick!” Baekhyun demands, slapping his hand on top of their table.

“Oh my god there’s more to my feelings than that,” Jongin says horrified, his face turning red.

“So you do want to suck him off,” the other boy cackles.

“Shut up,” Jongin kicks him from underneath the table. “I don’t even know if he swings _that_ way too.”

“Jongin, you’re kidding me, right?” Baekhyun gives him an incredulous look. “He’s a huge girl group fan.”

“Exactly!” Jongin points out. “He likes boobs and and the other stuff down _there_ ,” he gestures uncomfortably.

“Who likes boobs?” Sehun asks, sitting down next to them and throwing his unzipped backpack on the table. Pencils and post it notes roll out all over the place but the boy doesn’t seem to care.

“Kyungsoo does,” Jongin groans miserably, lightly banging his head against the table.

“No he’s gay,” Baekhyun insists. “He’s 100% gay.”

“If he were gay why would he spend 98% of his time looking at girls dance around in stuff shorter and tighter than underwear?” Jongin questions.

“There are two types of fanboys, Jongin,” Baekhyun points out. “The first type are the horny straight ones who jerk off to crotch shots and like being called ‘oppa’ and burn photocards when the idols are caught sucking face with actors. The second type are the gay ones. The ones who like the pretty fashion and the colorful aesthetics and the makeup and admire the girls for their personalities and want to be friends with them. Kyungsoo is definitely the second type.”

“How are you so sure about that?” Jongin asks.

“He’s shaking his butt like a Vegas escort over there!” Baekhyun says. “There’s no way he’s straight! And I saw Sohyun putting blush on him in the bathroom once! He’s gay! No straight guy has an ass that fat with a waist that tiny!”

“He could be bi?” Sehun suggests. “You know, batting for both teams. It would explain why he likes girl groups and acts like a twink.”

“So now I have to compete with two sexes,” Jongin’s face drops. “Great.”

“He’s gay, Jongin,” Baekhyun reassures him one last time with a pat on the shoulder. “Trust me on this.”

 

Jongin has learned the hard way that it’s not so easy to trust Baekhyun. The boy has lied about exam dates and other things more than once to Jongin and he’s also ratted him out when they were in trouble to save his own skin too. Jongin is still in deep shit from when his parents found out he and Baekhyun drank all of the Byun’s alcohol that one weekend during break because Baekhyun didn’t want to take the heat for it himself.

So of course he’s skeptical that Kyungsoo isn’t straight. As a gay, semi closeted, man himself he can’t find any appeal in looking at girls all day long and that’s practically all that Kyungsoo does. His lockscreen and homescreen are of a pretty girl group member and he’s always scrolling through pictures of them and listening to their songs and learning their dances. If Jongin were a gay kpop fan, he’d be obsessed over some of the cute boys that he sometimes sees in subway advertisements. There is also the possibility that Kyungsoo is bisexual like Sehun said but even if that were the case, his preference seems to lean towards the boobs. Of all the times that Jongin has subtly peeked at Kyungsoo’s phone screen he has not once seen any picture or reference to boys. It’s always girls, girls, and more girls and he’s losing hope.

 

“There comes your boo thing,” Baekhyun snickers during one of their break periods. Jongin looks up from his calculus worksheet and sees Kyungsoo walking into their classroom, his arms linked with Yoojung’s as they animatedly talk. He feels a jealous pit stir inside of him. Did Yoojung become his girlfriend over the weekend?

“I’m going to call him over,” Baekhyun says underneath his breath.

“Don’t you fucking dare,” Jongin threatens him, seething through his teeth.

“Too late,” Baekhyun grins cheekily before shouting across the room. “Kyungsoo!” He waves his hands in the air, beckoning for the other boy to come. Jongin immediately ducks his head and tries to make himself busy with his worksheet. He can feel the heat around him rising and the back of his neck become red.

“I’m going to fucking kill you,” he tells Baekhyun quietly. All his friend can do is laugh and Jongin has never hated a sound more in his life.

“Hi,” he hears Kyungsoo’s smooth voice greet from beside him. “Did you need something, Baekhyun?” Jongin’s eyes widen at this and he slightly turns his head to glare at Baekhyun.

_‘You guys know each other?’_ He mouths furiously. Baekhyun laughs again and nods and Jongin wants to fall into a black hole and get sucked away permanently.

“I was just wondering what you thought of the Summer Magic album,” Baekhyun says smoothly. “I saw you dancing to Power Up the other day in the quad and I know you’re just like the biggest Red Velvet fanboy.”

Jongin can almost hear the happiness in the small gasp that Kyungsoo takes before he launches into the longest, most detailed analysis of a girl group album that he has ever head in his life.

“...so yeah, I think I’m the only one who liked Power Up better than Blue Lemonade during the first listen and can you believe they changed Joohyun’s first line for the English version of Bad Boy? I was so ready to go “who that who that who that boy” but then I was hit with “who that who that who that is” and I swear it made my entire world shake. The original lyrics are already in English! Why would they change it to different English?” Kyungsoo finishes with a small huff. It’s the most Jongin has ever heard him speak and he’s understood none of it but he loved the sound of Kyungsoo’s voice.

“Oh yeah,” Baekhyun nods his head understandingly too. “ _Jongin_ was so upset about that too when he first listened to it.” Jongin’s body  freezes but his face manages to send the meanest, coldest glare he has ever produced towards Baekhyun.

“Oh, you like Red Velvet too?” Kyungsoo asks, his soft voice directed towards Jongin this time. Jongin and Baekhyun are in the middle of a furious silent battle, Jongin mouthing every single curse word and threat he knows at Baekhyun and Baekhyun kicking his shin to tell him to respond.

“Oh yeah,” Baekhyun breaks the silence first. “Jongin _loves_ Red Velvet. He’s almost as big of a fan as you.”

“Really?” Kyungsoo asks. Baekhyun kicks Jongin again and he finally turns to face his crush, breath catching in his throat at the sight of Kyungsoo’s pretty, glowing face right in front of his.

“Yeah,” He says with a smile, immediately regretting it but forcing the smile to stay on his face anyways. “Big fan. You know, all that red and all that...velvet.”

“Which concept do you like better?” Kyungsoo asks him, immediately intrigued as he grabs an empty chair and sits right in front of Jongin, his eyes wide with wonder.

“Umm...velvet?” He says cautiously, not having any clue as to what he’s saying.

“Me too!” Kyungsoo nearly squeals. He lets out a relieved breath. He said the right answer. “I mean I love both their red side and their velvet side but the velvet side is just so sophisticated and classy and no other group is really doing that type of sound and they look so pretty in their velvet outfits! Sometimes I do question the stuff they wear during their red concepts but they’re so pretty anyways that it doesn’t matter,” Kyungsoo begins to ramble. Jongin just sits there, not knowing how to respond.

“Who’s your favorite member?” Kyungsoo asks him suddenly. Jongin begins to panic. Today’s the first day he’s even heard of a Red Velvet and now he’s supposed to name a favorite member. How many members do they even have?

“Kyungsoo, we need to go,” Yoojung says from behind them. “Break is almost over.”

“Aww,” Kyungsoo frowns, turning to look over his shoulder. “I guess we’ll talk about this next time,” he sends a small smile towards Jongin, who’s heart rate picks up quickly. Kyungsoo slides the chair back to where it belongs and before he leaves he sends a small wave and another shy smile towards Jongin. Jongin waves back faintly and then lets his body go slack against his chair.

“Dude,” Baekhyun chuckles grabbing his shoulder. “You talked to him.”

“I’m going to kill you,” Jongin responds with a light, sadistic laugh. “You are so dead once we set foot outside of this school.”

 

Jongin doesn’t end up killing Baekhyun after school because his friend practically runs from him and hops in between two rapidly shutting subway doors before Jongin can grab him by the neck of his school uniform. Baekhyun only ever runs to his dog and if there’s food so Jongin figures that the physical exertion was enough punishment for the boy.

Once again, his phone is dead so he can’t even look up Red Velvet to figure out exactly what type of group they are and how many members they have so he spends the entire ride home thinking about Kyungsoo and his smooth skin and even smoother voice and his perfect, pink lips, and how his eyes were twinkling when he was talking. He waved at Jongin. Jongin feels himself turning pink just thinking about it, all giddy as he replays the moment over and over again in his head. Kyungsoo knows he exists now but he also thinks he’s a Red Velvet fanboy and Jongin has to do something about that quick.

When he gets home, he locks himself in his room, headphones plugged into his lap top as he does a quick Naver search on Red Velvet. He learns that they have five members are from SM. He’s heard of SM before. His sister’s cry about EXO-M all the time and curse out the company every chance they get. He does a brief lookover through the girls’ profiles and memorizes their names and faces. He spends the rest of the night watching their music videos and listening to their albums. He needs to be prepared when Kyungsoo approaches him tomorrow! He has Kingdom Come on repeat when he finally drifts to bed and he admits that maybe poppy girl group music isn’t too bad.

“I like Seulgi,” Jongin says as he bravely approaches Kyungsoo the next day during gym. Well Jongin is supposed to be in gym. Kyungsoo’s language arts class is taking advantage of the nice weather and reading their books outside. He sits next to the other boy underneath the shade of the tree, making sure to keep his space.

“I’m a big Seungwan fan,” Kyungsoo tells him, closing his book and setting it aside. Jongin blanks at that. Seungwan. Seungwan. Seungwan. The name doesn’t ring a bell at all.

“Oh yeah,” he tries to play it off. “She’s really cool too. Just so...so talented!”

“Her voice is so amazing,” Kyungsoo smiles. “I would love to do a duet with her someday but that’s just me dreaming.”

“You sing?” Jongin asks, intrigued. He watches as Kyungsoo grows shy and he loves the baby pink creeping up his neck and into his ears.

“Only for fun,” Kyungsoo clarifies, his voice a little squeaky. “I’m not that good at it.”

“I’m sure you’re amazing,” Jongin tells him. “Your speaking voice is really pretty,” he confesses before he can stop himself. _Way to go, Jongin!_ He smacks himself mentally. _That was way too gay to begin with_.

“Oh it’s not really,” Kyungsoo says shyly. “But thank you. Do you have a favorite song?”

“Right now I have Kingdom Come on repeat,” Jongin answers. Which isn’t a total lie. It was on repeat for a few hours last night but this morning he switched back to his The Weeknd playlist for the subway ride.

“A masterpiece!” Kyungsoo says, his hands shaking in the air from excitement. “You have good taste!”

“How about you?” Jongin asks him. “Anything you’re obsessed with right now?”

“Oh, definitely Time Slip,” Kyungsoo answers.

“Wow, one of my favorites too!” Jongin tells him. Again, not a complete lie. It was another one of the tracks that left a good impression on him.

“Kim Jongin, you get your ass back on the field right now,” their gym teacher Mr. Cho huffs at him from a few yards away. “Five more laps for you for skipping!”

“Oh, yikes,” Jongin grimaces as he turns to look at Kyungsoo. “Looks like I need to go.”

“You should go,” Kyungsoo agrees, nodding his head with a little giggle.

“Ten extra laps now, Kim!” Mr. Cho screams. “Don’t make me double it again!”

“I’ll catch up with you later,” Jongin gets up.

“Bye, Jongin,” Kyungsoo waves at him again, another smile sent his way. Jongin can’t even feel his thighs burn after the eighth lap around the track. All he can think about is Kyungsoo’s smile.

When he goes home that night he freshens up on his Red Velvet knowledge, realizing that Seungwan is actually Wendy and that Joy is also Sooyoung and Irene is Joohyun. He goes on fan pages and reads up more about the group, browsing Pann and other websites. Seulgi has a brother. Yeri has sisters and is the oldest in her family. Wendy-Seungwan spent a lot of time in Canada and is fluent in English and she plays guitar. He goes to bed feeling more prepared than ever. He’ll be ready for Kyungsoo tomorrow, he’s sure.

He finds Kyungsoo in the other boy’s classroom, doodling in his notebook and Jongin takes a seat, asking Kyungsoo what his favorite dance was. Kyungsoo likes Peekaboo. Jongin likes Dumb Dumb the best. Things are going pretty smoothly until suddenly Kyungsoo asks him which Weekly Idol episode is his favorite. Jongin didn’t even know such a show existed.

“I like all of them!” He says with a desperate vigor to conceal his ignorance. “The most recent one though. Yeah that was funny.”

“One of my favorite things they ever did on Weekly Idol was when Joohyun set the new record for that flexibility contest,” Kyungsoo gushes. “It made me want to start yoga too so I can become more flexible but lessons are expensive so I just learn from YouTube videos.”

“You do yoga?” Jongin asks, a dumb smile on his face. He can only imagine Kyungsoo in skin tight leggings, stretched across the floor.

“And their 2x dances are so amazing,” Kyungsoo continues to praise. “When they did 2x Red Flavor during that festival on accident it was so funny.” He giggles.

“Yeah,” Jongin fakes a laugh. “It was so cute.” He’s been so busy talking to Kyungsoo that he doesn’t realize the classroom is filling up again and there’s a very strong and disgruntled student standing behind him. Youngwoo is a judo athlete and Jongin should be slightly terrified of making him upset.

“Jongin,” Kyungsoo calls out his name softly. “Break is almost over. Maybe you should head back to your class?”

“Get out of my seat,” Youngwoo says gruffly. Jongin scrambles out of the chair and gives the bigger boy a short bow.

“I’ll see you later,” he waves faintly at Kyungsoo before shuffling out of the class. He has a lot of catching up to do with Red Velvet shows when gets home too.

So that’s how he spends his days, talking to Kyungsoo about Red Velvet and then using his time at home to watch their shows and learn more about them so he can talk to Kyungsoo even more the next day. Eventually he actually finds himself kind of enjoying the shows and the girls are funny and endearing. Still though, they don’t compare to Kyungsoo. Now that they know each other a little more, no one could ever compare to how wonderful Kyungsoo is. Jongin is completely smitten and he even buys his first album to send a picture of his photocard to Kyungsoo.

“I thought you liked boys,” his sister says, leaning against his doorframe with a bowl of ramen in her hands. He’s re-watching a Knowing Brothers episode that Kyungsoo had mentioned again today.

“I do,” he groans at her. “Get out of my room.”

“It’s okay to be a gay fanboy,” Junghwa cheeses at him. “It’s also okay to like boobs.”

“I don’t like boobs!” He yells back at her, taking a pillow to throw. She dodges it easily though and just snickers.

“There’s a festival coming up and Red Velvet will be there. My boys will be there too and maybe if you’re nice to me, I’ll buy you the tickets and you can tag along with me.”

“What’s in it for me?” Jongin grumbles, pausing the video.

“You get to see the loves of your life,” Junghwa laughs, making a kissy face at him before leaving. Jongin thinks about it and then realizes his opportunity, dashing out of his computer chair and chasing his sister to the living room.

“I’ll do your dishes and clean the bathroom for a month if you get me two tickets to that festival!” He tells her.”

“Three months,” she demands.

“Two,” he’s not willing to go any higher.

“Fine,” she settles.

“But that’s only if you get me _two_ tickets,” Jongin reminds her. “I need two.” He’s going to take Kyungsoo to this festival. He’s going to try and make it a date.

 

“I have an extra ticket for the Open Air Festival,” he tells Kyungsoo a week later. They’re walking to the station together after school. Once Kyungsoo realized that they took the same line home, he insisted that they walk together, sharing a pair of headphones with Red Velvet on repeat.

“You do?” Kyungsoo stops, turning to look at Jongin with his eyes growing wide.

“Would you like to go with me?” Jongin asks, his voice feeling like a bubble in his throat. His palms are suddenly sweaty and Wendy’s voice rings in his ear.  


_Tell me is this the first time_

_Have you fallen for me as much as I have fallen for you_

_I want to know everything_

_If my heart has grown deeper than yours like a fool_

 

“I would love to,” Kyungsoo says breathlessly, the twinkle in his eyes making Jongin’s heart melt. “How much do I owe you?”

“What are you talking about?” Jongin asks with a small frown.

“For the ticket. How much did it cost?”

“Oh, you don’t have to pay me back,” Jongin tells him. “It’s no big deal, really. I know you really like them too.”

“Wow,” Kyungsoo sighs prettily. “We get to see our girls again.”

“Yeah,” Jongin mumbles as they start to walk again. Girls.

 

In the two weeks leading up to the festival, they somehow run out of Red Velvet related things to talk about and have conversations about other things. He learns that Kyungsoo wants to go to school to study veterinary medicine. Jongin’s heart nearly melts at that. He loves animals and just imagining Kyungsoo surrounded by cute little dogs is doing extreme things to his emotions. He himself wants to go into orthodontics. Ever since he’s gotten his teeth fixed back in middle school, he’s been fascinated with the field.

It’s amazing how much they have in common besides Red Velvet, which doesn’t really count because Jongin doesn’t think he will ever love them as much as Kyungsoo does. They both own poodles, Jongin has three and Kyungsoo has two. They’re on the quiet side unless there’s something they’re very passionate about. They enjoy food and good places to eat and sometimes they even take a detour on the way home and find a small restaurant to sit at and do homework or just chat about anything they can think about.

It rains the day before the concert and Jongin thanks the heavens that he had listened to his mom that morning and stuffed an umbrella into the side of his backpack. Kyungsoo on the other hand is not so fortunate and is waiting for him underneath the awning of the school building.

“Didn’t look at the weather this morning?” Jongin teases him, stepping close so the umbrella is covering the both of them.

“I had other things on my mind,” Kyungsoo pouts.

“It’s okay,” Jongin laughs. “We can walk slow to the station.”

For once they aren’t talking about anything, just the steady sound of rain falling around them and echoing against the nylon of the umbrella. It’s not awkward though, their bodies pressed close together to huddle away from the rain and their footsteps falling in synch.

The station isn’t busy at all when they reach it, everyone already rushed home for the weekend away from the rain. Jongin and Kyungsoo sit next to each other, slumped against the seats and giving into the exhaustion from the long school week. They’re sharing Kyungsoo’s headphones again, Wendy’s voice crooning in their ears.

“This is your stop,” Kyungsoo says panickedly as the doors open but Jongin makes no move to get up. He pulls the headphone out of Jongin’s ear and attempts to help him gather his backpack but Jongin stops him as the doors slide back shut.

“I think it’s still raining outside,” Jongin tells him. “I’ll walk you to your house and catch the subway back.”

“Oh, Jongin, you don’t have to,” Kyungsoo frowns. “It’s out of your way and you must want to enjoy your Friday night too.”

“But I want to,” Jongin tells him. “It’s not like I have a choice now either,” he points to the closed doors and the train begins to move. “Either way I’ll have to get off and circle back. Besides I can’t let you walk home in the rain. What if you get sick and we can’t go to the festival together tomorrow?”

“You’re really excited for the festival, huh?” Kyungsoo asks, wrapping his headphones up neatly and putting them back into his bag.

“Of course I am,” Jongin says. “I get to see Red Velvet!” _And spend time with you_. “I hope they perform Bad Boy.”

“They probably will,” Kyungsoo nods, fidgeting with his hands.

“Are you okay?” Jongin asks, leaning over a little concerned. Kyungsoo looks distracted.

“I am,” Kyungsoo’s head snaps up and he nods. “The rain just has me feeling a little down.”

“Yeah,” Jongin agrees. “I hope it doesn’t rain tomorrow night. That would just ruin everything.”

“It would,” Kyungsoo nods. “The next stop is mine. My house is only a five minute walk from the station.” The train stops and the two of them quickly get their things and walk out of the station. It’s barely raining now, just a light drizzle but Jongin swings out his umbrella anyway and pulls Kyungsoo close so he doesn’t get wet. Kyungsoo lives in an actual house and Jongin is slightly in awe. He’s been an apartment kid his entire life. They both linger by the front door, Jongin’s umbrella still hovering over them.

“That was short,” Jongin says stupidly. He wants to hit himself as soon as the words are out of his mouth but that would make him look even more stupid.

“Do you, do you want to come in for a bit?” Kyungsoo asks, his gaze flitting down to stare at the puddle in front of the door.

“Can I?” Jongin asks, taken aback.

“Of course,” Kyungsoo stammers, looking back up. “My mom is making dinner right now, probably some type of soup to go with the rain. You must be hungry.”

“I’d love to have dinner with you,” Jongin says with a smile. Kyungsoo smiles back and shyly leads Jongin inside. They even have a small yard and persimmon tree growing.

There’s the smell of kimchi jjigae boiling on the stove when they walk in and and Jongin sees a petite woman standing by the counter, chopping up some silken tofu.

“Oh, you’ve brought a friend,” she sets down her knife carefully and wipes her hand with a towel.

“This is Kim Jongin, a classmate from school,” Kyungsoo says and Jongin greets her politely. “Can he stay for dinner?”

“Of course he can,” She smiles at him. She and Kyungsoo have the same smile, Jongin notes. “The more the merrier in this house.”

“We’ll be in my room,” Kyungsoo says. “Call me if you need any help.” He leads Jongin to his room and Jongin is awe by the Red Velvet posters on his walls and the shelf full of albums and photobooks and other trinkets.

“Wow,” He whistles. “You sure have me beat as a fan.”

“I tried to get into a fansign during One of These Nights,” Kyungsoo explains, his face turning red. “It didn’t work out and my dad almost killed me for using my allowance on so many albums so now I’m only allowed to buy a max of three.”

“Can I touch?” Jongin asks, wandering towards the shelf. Kyungsoo nods and Jongin picks up a binder, flipping it open to find a collection of photocards. Most of them are of Wendy but a few of the other girls are scattered throughout the collection too. He stops at one of Seulgi making a kissy face at the camera. Kyungsoo walks over, a little too close behind him. The smaller boy’s chin is practically resting on top of Jongin’s shoulder and he gets flustered, nearly dropping the binder.

“She’s just really pretty,” Jongin says, closing the binder and putting it back on the shelf.

“Do you want it?” Kyungsoo asks, plucking the binder off again and flipping to the page. He slides the photocard out of its sleeve and hands it over to Jongin. “You can have it.”

“Really?” Jongin asks. He knows that there’s this weird type of obsession over photocards in many idol fandoms.

“Yeah,” Kyungsoo shrugs. Jongin takes it carefully and slides it into the front pocket of his phone case to keep it safe. Kyungsoo sits on his bed and Jongin cautiously joins him as Kyungsoo turns on his laptop and they begin to stream a 2D1N episode that just came out recently. Fast forward forty five minutes and all initial reservations are gone as they’re both laughing like crazy, sprawled out against Kyungsoo’s pillows and blankets with a small plate of cut up apples that Kyungsoo’s mom had brought in for them. Kyungsoo’s two dogs are cuddled up against them too and Kyungsoo is holding the small black one like a little baby. It’s doing dangerous things to Jongin’s heart.

When Kyungsoo’s dad gets home, they eat dinner and Jongin is nervous but the Doh’s are very welcoming and the food is delicious and he eases up a bit. It’s not as loud as dinners as his house because Kyungsoo is the only kid that still lives at home but the conversation is still there and the small family seems really close.

“So Jongin, do you have a girlfriend?” Kyungsoo’s dad asks him out of the blue. Jongin chokes on his hot broth at the same time Kyungsoo does.

“Daaaadd,” Kyungsoo whines, shooting a short glare at his father.

“Just curious,” his dad shrugs. “He’s a handsome boy in his prime. College girls are more fun though,” he mock whispers the last part with a playful chuckle.

“Not currently seeing anyone,” Jongin fake laughs back. “I’m just enjoying my youth without trying to worry about stuff like that.” The truth is that he stresses so much over Kyungsoo though.

“I keep telling Kyungsoo to go out on dates so he can get experience for college,” Mr. Doh says, “but this guy is just too shy to do it.”

“Dad,” Kyungsoo protests softly again.

“Okay we’ll stop talking about love lifes now,” his dad says. “What baseball team do you like the best? Answer wisely now, boy.”

 

“I’m sorry about my dad,” Kyungsoo apologizes as he walks Jongin out to the door after dinner. It’s raining hard again, the thick drops plopping loudly against the house.

“It’s okay,” Jongin laughs. “I think all dads act like that.”

“Will you be okay going home?” Kyungsoo asks, sticking his hand out in the rain and letting a few drops fall onto his palm, trucking across his smooth skin.

“I’m a big boy,” Jongin playfully reminds him. “A little bit of rain and cold never hurt anyone.”

“But what if you get sick?” Kyungsoo frowns. “Wait right there.” Kyungsoo disappears back into his room and comes out with a soft gray scarf, standing on his tiptoes to carefully wrap it around Jongin’s neck, covering his mouth gently.

“It’s not much but I think it’s better than nothing,” Kyungsoo says, admiring his handiwork. “I would give you a jacket but I think none of mine would fit you.”

Jongin pulls the scarf down just a tad.

“You’re so sweet,” he says, not able to hide the adoration in his voice and eyes. Kyungsoo is so perfect.

“You should get going before the rain gets worse,” Kyungsoo worries. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“I’ll meet you at exit three at the station?” Jongin asks.

“Yes,” Kyungsoo nods. “I’ll be there.”

“I’ll be waiting,” Jongin nods. He walks to the subway station  with a stupid smile on his face, not caring that half of his body is getting wet.

 

Jongin arrives at exit three first, the two tickets clenched tightly in his hands. His sister is with her group of friends and they had already left first to fight their way into a good spot in the pit. Jongin and Kyungsoo have seated tickets so they don’t have to worry. He’s dressed in jeans and a black hoodie, the hood down so he can show off the gray scarf wrapped loosely around his neck. He didn’t do it as well as Kyungsoo but he hopes the other male notices it.

He sees Kyungsoo walking towards him and his heart beats faster as he wipes his palms against his jeans to make sure they’re dry. Kyungsoo is also wearing jeans but he has the cutest olive green sweater on and a small, beige cross body bag slung over his shoulder. Jongin had just stuffed his wallet and phone in his back pocket.

“Hi, Jongin,” he says breathlessly, his cheeks dusted a faint pink. “I thought I was going to be late.”

“I’m just early,” Jongin smiles at him. “You look great though!”

“You too,” Kyungsoo smiles sheepishly. “I don’t think we’ve ever seen each other outside of our school uniforms.” He doesn’t mention the scarf.

They walk together out of the busy station to the grounds where the festival is being held. The concert isn’t for another hour and a half so they have time to wander around and see the food vendors and carnival games.

Kyungsoo gets them a poke bowl to share for dinner, pulling money out of his bag and tucking the change safely back in. They sit on one of the benches and pick at the sashimi and teriyaki chicken together. There’s only one shrimp tempura though and Kyungsoo bites into half of it before offering the other half to Jongin with his own chopsticks. Jongin stares at it a little bewildered before he leans in and eats the rest of it. Their first indirect kiss. He hopes Kyungsoo can’t hear how hard his heart is beating.

Jongin buys a crispy churro and a cup of vanilla ice cream for both of them and Kyungsoo looks so cute munching on the cinnamon dusted treat and chasing it away with ice cream. He gets ice cream on his upper lip and Jongin has to fight the urge to kiss it away. Kyungsoo ends up accidentally licking it off and Jongin breathes slowly and counts to ten.

They have no plans to play any games, just wandering through the alley to admire the sound and the bright lights but Jongin gets conned by one of the booth runners into a quick game. The goal is to pop three water balloons out of five chances with darts. It costs five thousand won for five darts and Jongin forks up the money, handing the crinkled bill to the old man with the mischievous smile.

On his first try he only pops one balloon out of five and he knows the game is rigged, the darts aren’t sharp enough to actually puncture through the outside of the balloons but he’s stubborn and annoyed and rips his wallet out of his back pocket, grabbing another five thousand won bill and giving it to the attendant. He only pops one balloon again.

“It’s okay, Jongin,” Kyungsoo put an encouraging hand on his shoulder. “It’s hard to win these games. I don’t think I’ve ever gotten a prize from one of them before.” That only makes Jongin tear out another bill from his wallet and he hands it over.

“Last try,” He promises. He’s given five more darts and surprisingly the first two hit water balloons straight on. Kyungsoo gasps next to him and even the attendant looks a little shocked and Jongin smiles. He’s got this. His next dart however misses a balloon completely and the one after that hits a balloon right in the center but bounces off.

“Two is still really good, Jongin,” Kyungsoo says. “That’s two more than I would’ve got.”

Jongin agrees with a faint sigh and half heartedly tosses his last dart. He isn’t expecting it to actually hit a balloon and for water to spill out of the tiny plastic sack but when it does, his jaw drops and Kyungsoo is jumping excitedly next to him.

“You did it!” Kyungsoo cheers next to him. “You got all three!” The attendant is ringing the winner bell, looking happy that Jongin won too.

“Pick a prize,” he tells them.” Any prize.”

Jongin scans the collection of mid sized plush toys hanging on the walls and he points at a sumikko gurashi kitty.

“That one,” he smiles gleefully. The attendant plucks it off the wall and hands it over and Jongin squishes the soft toy in his hands.  

“You can carry it,” He hands it over to Kyungsoo. The other boy takes it carefully and squishes it close against his chest, hugging it.

“It’s so cute,” Kyungsoo giggles. Jongin is going to let him keep it. He won it for Kyungsoo.

They end up finding their seats for the concert fifteen minutes before it starts. Jongin feels mildly out of place with a group of fangirls with light sticks on his right and a big group of fanboys with uchiwas and banners behind him but Kyungsoo is right next to him and that’s all that matters.

“Our seats are so nice,” Kyungsoo marvels, snapping a picture of the extended stage with his phone. The kitty is still in his arms, cradled safely in between his body and the strap of his bag. Jongin can see the patrons in the pit pushing and shoving each other and he’s getting anxiety just looking at it. His sister is insane.

The concert starts out with some rookie groups that Jongin does not recognize at all but he tries to bop along to the songs and enjoy the music. The girls next to him scream loudly over a boy group that comes out halfway through and Jongin hopes they have warm tea waiting for them at home because by the end of the set it sounds like their throats are gone.

Then the familiar beats and chants of Red Flavor come on and the group of boys behind him roar and stand up, cheering loudly. Kyungsoo stands up too and begins to do the fanchant happily, his hands clapping and his little body swaying from side to side. Jongin isn’t even staring at the stage or the girls, his eyes caught on Kyungsoo who has the prettiest smile on his face and the brightest twinkle in his eyes. Jongin’s heart grows so warm and tight in his chest and his breath is stuck in his throat but he wouldn’t give up this moment for anything. Kyungsoo is so beautiful. More beautiful than any celebrity or star in the entire universe. If looking at Kyungsoo means feeling like this then Jongin wouldn’t care if he never took another breath.

Kyungsoo turns to look at him and Jongin gets embarrassed, turning his attention to the stage and starting to do the fanchants too. From the corner of his eye he can see Kyungsoo chuckling at his attempt and that only makes Jongin more enthusiastic with his chant. The girls finish three songs and stop to do their ment.

“They’re so much prettier in real life,” Jongin comments. Their skirts are so much shorter too.

“They are,” Kyungsoo agrees.

“SEULGI MARRY ME!!!!!!” One of the guys behind him screams when it’s her turn to speak.

“Looks like you have competition,” Kyungsoo jokes.

“Ha!” Jongin laughs. “As if.” But in reality he’s competing against five gorgeous girls for the heart of a boy that he doesn’t even know the sexuality of.

They do Bad Boy next and the entire venue grows hot and loud with cheers again and Jongin genuinely enjoys himself, screaming just as loud as the guys behind him whenever Seulgi’s parts come on. During the beginning of Power Up, he sees Kyungsoo struggling to open a water bottle with the kitty in his way.

“I can hold that for you,” Jongin reaches for the kitty so that Kyungsoo can drink his water. The stadium is full of energy and cheers and as Kyungsoo turns to the side to put his water bottle under his seat, Jongin is surprised as the kitty is ripped out of his arms from one of the guys behind him and thrown all the way down the seats and onto the stage in front of Yeri. The song and the girls are done now and they’re bowing and waving goodbye to the fans. Kyungsoo turns towards Jongin, his palms open to receive kitty back but Jongin is still shellshocked and empty handed. Kyungsoo is confused but he looks at the stage just in time to see a familiar kitty being picked up by Yeri and hugged tightly, accompanying the girl off the stage.

The air between them suddenly grows stale and they both sit down as the last group comes on stage. It’s EXO-M and the crowd grows even louder and wilder but Jongin isn’t paying attention at all. He doesn’t know what to do or say to Kyungsoo. The other male isn’t really talking either, just faintly bobbing his head along to the boy group but his heart isn’t in it. Jongin can tell.

He makes up a plan to go back to the booth and try to win another kitty for Kyungsoo as soon as the concert is over. When the closing stage is done, he grabs Kyungsoo’s wrist and tries as fast as he can to get out of the crowd but to his dismay, all the booths and vendors have already packed up for the night. His heart sinks and he whips around to find Kyungsoo still obediently in his grasp. He lets go and mumbles out a small apology.

“Should we go home?” Kyungsoo asks.

“Yeah,” Jongin sighs. “Let’s go home.”

The foot traffic to the subway station is slow and Jongin guides Kyungsoo’s hand to hold onto his shoulders so they don’t lose each other. Their trains are going in opposite directions so they won’t be riding with each other but Jongin wants to say a proper goodbye. Just as they find an area with a bit more breathing space and Jongin is about to apologize for the whole kitty fiasco, the back of his hoodie is pulled and his sister is yelling in his ear.

“What’s the point of having a phone if you don’t pick it up?” She says, waving her own phone at him. She’s called him seven times and he hasn’t heard a single one of them. He had put his phone on silent before the concert began.

“Mom says we need to go home right now because you’re still underage and you have a curfew. I’ve been looking for you for twenty minutes now and I swear to god, Jongin, if I get in trouble because of you I am going to kill you.”

“Okay, calm down you psycho,” Jongin pulls his hoodie away from her roughly, not appreciating being yelled at. “Just let me say goodbye and then we can go-,” He turns around to find Kyungsoo but the other male is gone, like he had never been standing there in the first place. Jongin feels his heart drop again along with his head and his sister begins dragging him towards their train like he’s a toddler. The night ends full of regrets and Jongin can’t get that icky feeling out of his chest.

 

He and Kyungsoo don’t talk after that night. No one makes the first move to send a text message and they’re in different classes at school so it’s hard for Jongin to catch Kyungsoo in between breaks. He walks home alone now, not knowing if Kyungsoo takes the train earlier or later than him. He feels lonelier than ever and has Lauv on repeat as he’s stuck doing his sister’s chores. Nothing is able to cheer him up, not even being invited to play video games at Baekhyun’s house.

“What’s got you so mopey?” Baekhyun asks, turning the console off. “You always beat me at Coconut Mall but you didn’t even try this time.”

“I think Kyungsoo is avoiding me,” Jongin groans, spreading himself against Baekhyun’s couch in defeat. Mongryong waddles over and plops himself in his lap.

“Why would you say that?” Baekhyun asks. “Didn’t you guys go to a concert together the other night?”

“And we haven’t talked since,” Jongin says. “I didn’t even get to say goodbye to him. He just left while my sister was yelling at me.”

“Your sister is scary when she yells,” Baekhyun points out.

“But not enough for him to avoid me,” Jongin frowns. “What if he decided he doesn’t want to be my friend anymore? What if he found out that I’m gay and I have this massive gay crush on him and he thinks it’s weird?”

“I’m telling you, Jongin, he’s gay too!” Baekhyun throws a pillow at him. It bounces off his head and scares Mongryong who curls up in Jongin’s lap. “Maybe he’s just confused about his own feelings and needs time?”

“I think I just fucked up,” Jongin sighs. “I didn’t even get a chance.”

“No,” Baekhyun says firmly. “I am not letting you give up like this! I didn’t spend all those months watching you pine and sigh like a loser over this guy for you to give up after one failed date! You are going to give him a week and if nothing happens then you are going to march over to him and tell him that you like him! If he doesn’t like you back then you can come back here and cry and eat all my mom’s ice cream but there’s the chance he likes you back! Then you’ll be all happy and lovey dovey together and me and Sehun can gag behind your backs.”

“I don’t think he likes me that way,” Jongin sighs again. “You should’ve seen the way he was looking at Red Velvet. He looked so starstruck and in love.”

“Get it together, you oaf,” Baekhyun says, swooping his dog out of Jongin’s lap. “No puppy cuddles until you’ve confessed to Kyungsoo! Just one more time, man. I swear it’ll be worth it.”

“Fine,” Jongin grumbles, grabbing a handful of chips and stuffing them in his mouth. What does he have to lose? Just his entire heart. No big deal at all.

 

For the next week there’s no contact from Kyungsoo and Jongin barely sees him in the hallways. His phone remains dry of any messages from the other boy and his dreary days grow more gray with each hour. It’s a Friday after school when Jongin sucks up his gut and takes the train towards Kyungsoo’s house to make his ultimate confession. He has nothing planned, no scripts or props. Just him and that warm gray scarf around his neck and as he approaches the Doh’s house and his stomach begins to flip faster than a burning pancake, he realizes how much of a mistake it was to come unprepared but it’s too late. He’s already standing in front of the door and ringing the bell. It’s Kyungsoo who opens the door.

“Jongin?” He asks, surprised as he makes the entryway a little smaller. Jongin’s missed his voice and he steps closer, preventing Kyungsoo from closing the door.

“Hey,” He says awkwardly with a small wave of his hand.

“What are you doing here?” Kyungsoo asks, his body language defensive as he hides half of his self behind the door.

“I-umm-I came to return this,” He quickly unravels the scarf from his neck and holds it out to Kyungsoo. “It’ll be winter soon and I thought you’d need it back.”

“Oh,” Kyungsoo says, cautiously taking the scarf back. It’s starkly silent between them. “Was that all?”

_No,_ Jongin thinks. “Did I do something wrong?” He blurts out before he can stop himself. “I think you’ve been avoiding me and I don’t know what I did to deserve it.”

Kyungsoo’s body grows smaller as he cowers behind the door.

“I just really liked hanging out with you and talking to you,” Jongin begins to ramble. “I thought we got along really well and that we were good friends. I don’t know what went wrong.”

“I don’t want to be your friend,” Kyungsoo mumbles so quietly that Jongin almost misses it.

“Well I didn’t want to be your friend either,” Jongin says a bit louder than Kyungsoo. “I liked you more than that,” he says bravely. “I wanted to be your boyfriend. I wanted to hold your hand and take you on cute dates and kiss you in the rain.”

“You like me?” Kyungsoo says in disbelief, the door gap opening just a tiny bit.

“Yeah,” Jongin laughs bitterly. “I’m gay. I like guys. I like _you_.”

“I thought you were straight!” Kyungsoo blurts out suddenly. “I thought you were only talking to me because you wanted to talk to someone about how hot Red Velvet was!”

“What?” Jongin asks, flustered. “Why would you think that?”

“Because you acted like a typical straight guy,” Kyungsoo opens the door wide now. “The type of guy who only likes them because they have nice bodies and you think of them sexually. I mean what was I supposed to think? You claimed to be a fan and you didn’t even know much about them when we first started talking and you look confused when I talked about fandom stuff so I thought you only liked them for their bodies. Then you were always staring at them and you looked like you liked my Seulgi photocard just a little too much and you threw the kitty at Yeri and you screamed just as loud as the group of guys behind us and I just thought you were straight. So I avoided you because I didn’t want to get hurt,” Kyungsoo finishes, looking bashfully at the ground.

“I dropped your photocard binder because you were touching me and I got nervous,” Jongin says. “And the kitty thing, that wasn’t me. Some dumbo from behind us took it from me and threw it. I was going to give it to you, I swear. I won it for you. I wanted you to have it. I’m so attracted to you, Kyungsoo. I would give you the world if you let me. I lied about liking Red Velvet because I wanted to get close to you. That’s why I seemed so dumb at the beginning. Seulgi is cool but you are _so_ much cooler and cuter and I think you’re so perfect and beautiful and lovely and I just want to spend all my time listening to you talk and laugh. I just want to be with you.”

“I liked you too,” Kyungsoo says shyly, his gaze meeting Jongin’s. “I was really happy during our date.”

“Really?” Jongin asks.

“Very happy,” Kyungsoo nods, taking a step closer towards Jongin. “All I could think about was how much I wanted to kiss you.”

“You wanted to kiss me?” Jongin asks, a dumb smile making its way onto his face.

“I still want to kiss you,” Kyungsoo says boldly.

“Then what are you waiting for?” Jongin says breathlessly. The words are barley out of his mouth before Kyungsoo is sliding the scarf back around Jongin’s neck and using it to pull the taller boy in for their first, sweet kiss. Their lips meet softly, molding between each other so perfectly and Kyungsoo pulls the scarf tighter, bringing Jongin closer against him. Jongin rests his hands firmly on Kyungsoo’s waist as their lips move and their heads angle so that every press and slide of their mouths is absolutely wonderful. All Jongin can feel and smell is Kyungsoo and he wants to do nothing more than stay in this moment forever. They part for air, pulling away just centimeters, areas of their mouths still touching and Kyungsoo giggles so pleasantly. Jongin presses his mouth against Kyungsoo’s again, swallowing the sweet sound and moaning.

“You are so perfect,” He whispers against Kyungsoo’s plush lips. “So perfect. I like you so much.”

Kyungsoo lets go of the scarf and wraps his arms around Jongin’s neck. Jongin is too tall so Kyungsoo’s feet dangle off the floor a little bit but that’s quickly fixed when Jongin picks him up, arms cradled underneath his bottom. Kyungsoo gives his nose a quick peck.

“I like you so much too,” he smiles. “Even if you don’t really like Red Velvet.”

“I like them,” Jongin laughs, “but I’ll always like you more.”

“Do you want to hear a secret?” Kyungsoo asks. He leans in close, his breath ticking Jongin’s ear. “ _I like you more too.”_ Jongin’s heart grows so big he feels like it’s going to destroy him.

“So let’s clarify this once and for all, you’re gay too?” Jongin asks teasingly.

“I got a major boner for you when you told me you had Kingdom Come on repeat,” Kyungsoo gently flicks his forehead.

“I feel like I just have a permanent boner for you,” Jongin confesses. Kyungsoo laughs and kisses Jongin square on the mouth again.

“I’ll win you a new kitty,” Jongin promises. “I won’t let anyone take it from you this time.”

“Are you asking me out on another date?” Kyungsoo grins widely.

“I’m asking you out for life,” Jongin says. “Working up to this moment was so hard I don’t think I can go through it again, especially with someone who will never be as amazing as you.”

“Aww, my dumb-dumb,” Kyungsoo coos.

“Yes,” Jongin nods and laughs. “Your dumb-dumb, always yours.”

 

 


End file.
